His parents, Clen-Moore Presbyterian Church in Shenango Presbytery, Young Life, The Boy Scouts of America, and the Sankey Youth Center in New Castle, PA, are the people and places that shaped Gary’s early faith.  Gary served as a deacon while in high school.  He met his wife Lisa while scrubbing pots and pans and co-editing the campus Christian newsletter at Grove City College.  Following their marriage in 1978, they headed off to Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, where Gary received his M.Div. in 1981.

Gary has served pastorates in Sparta, Illinois (1981-1984), Madelia, Minnesota (1984-1988), and Leechburg, PA (1988-2006).  Gary and Lisa currently serve as co-pastors of a one-year-old church, Cross Roads Community Presbyterian Church in Leechburg, PA, Kiskiminetas Presbytery.

In Kiski Presbytery, Gary has served as chair of the Bills and Overtures and Nominating committees, and as a member of the Committee on Ministry, Transformational Task Group, and Presbytery Restructuring Task Group.  He is a member of Presbytery Council.  At the Synod level, Gary served on the former Synod School Leadership Team from 1998-2002 and served as co-chair, with Lisa, of the Synod School Worship Team in 2001.  He presently serves on the Church Development Coordinating Team of Synod and is the Synod Clergy Commissioner from Kiskiminetas Presbytery.  At the GA level, Gary served as an Adult Advisor to the Youth Advisory Delegates in 2001-2002 and served as Kiski’s clergy commissioner to General Assembly in 2002.

Other work in previous presbyteries and synods includes: Committee on Women and the Church, and two church camp boards.

Gary and Lisa have been married for 28 years, have two daughters, Abby (married) and Karen (a student), and are most recently grandparents of baby Eleanor!  Gary is a captain with the Leechburg Volunteer Fire Company and enjoys woodworking, hunting, and spending time with his empty nest family, Lisa and their Chesapeake Bay Retriever, Cassie.

The Synod welcomes Gary as our 2007 Moderator.  Feel free to email him at gjlyon@windstream.net.

Gary presiding	Mary Speedy, Lesley Shoup, Gary Lyon

Mary, a Certified Church Educator, is a commissioner from Carlisle Presbytery where she serves as Director of Christian Education at Monaghan Presbyterian Church in Dillsburg, PA.  This is the fourth church Mary has served in that capacity.  She also worked for the Synod of the Trinity as an Associate in Educational Ministries and for the Presbyteries of Carlisle and Donegal as Educational Consultant.  She  worked for a short time in Louisville, KY for the Curriculum Publishing as the POINT resource person.

Mary lives in Dillsburg with her husband, Jim and two cats. Their two children live in the Seattle area. Son, Ted, is a Captain the US Army and daughter, Melissa, is a stay-at-home mother caring for children, Natalie and Benjamin.  Mary will usually be seen with knitting needles in her hands.

Mary is welcomed as Vice-Moderator and can be reached at mspeedy@comcast.net.